thanks! i'm trying to find housing all the way from los angeles, so i can relate to the difficulty.

been struggling with my decision to go to iowa for a month now, mainly b/c im worried about the job market opportunities and how far the name of the school will take me (or not take me). plus, im asian and from los angeles, the culture difference is enough to make me hesitant.

please feel free to hit me up with as many housing questions as you need. i'm renting from the CJG place Kevin recommended; I passed it along to him and despite a somewhat cruddy miscommunication in his case (still SO SORRY KEVIN!!) they have been nothing but sweet to me. I worked with Southgate Property Management and they were really pushy and incredibly unresponsive when I pushed them on the tough questions. Also I saw lots of complaints about their responsiveness from current residents when doing an idle search. Heritage Prop Mgmt seemed nice but they were low on properties when I called last. A lot of kids live at the Seville but they were total heffers to me and last I checked they were down to only 2 BR; if you want a 2 BR (which i got) you can get one larger and cheaper than you will find with them.

if you have a particular address and wanna know what it's like i can probably help. i'm from Chicago and I've driven to iowa city three times now. trust me, i'm a lil' worried about the culture shock, too. i'm not sure what i'll do without 5 am nightlife and the city life. but, honestly, iowa city is very peaceful and seeing as we've got a lot of work ahead of us for the next three years it might be necessary. when i think about staying here to go to school i think it woudl be really frustrating--its not like you can afford a fun style of life when you're living on borrowed money.

you will be amazed at how much you can get in iowa city for not a lot of money. the newer places cost more; i would like to rent/buy a condo next year but this year i went with something a little older but super close to campus and VERY clean. family owned, no BS, lots of grad students in the apts, aka quiet. i'm paying 610 for a two bedroom and that includes heat, water, internet and parking. ps: you want to avoid taking a place where you pay for water; it's expensive in iowa city

hope that helps.like i said, let me know if you have any questions

Wow... much cheaper than I was looking at. I found a really nice place right off the expressway behind a holiday inn for about 825. It was really nice but only a 1 bedroom, the kitchen is huge which is important b/c we both love to look.

On the other hand, I noticied you are all food lovers... the Quad cities which is 1 hr away isn't that bad. Most of those places totally blow away connecticutt and Chicago is only 4 hours away which is by far the best place to buy food in the world (in my humble opinion). Besides this might give you all a good opportunity to learn how to cook for yourselves. The vegetables and meats will be very fresh.

Blocke, I considered living a bit farther away from campus because you can get a nicer place (newer, larger apt complexes with more ammenities, more affordable townhouses etc...) and I think I might do this 2L and 3L if I get the energy to move again My place is cheap and close to campus but it's older; i'm not keen on not having central air and sacrificing my precious dishwasher but i didn't want to have to drive to class every morning if i didn't want to. that place you're looking at *does* seem a little high, though--is everything included??

i can't wait for the fresh vegetables and meats. they run farmers markets through october--scoped them out last time i was there.

Does anyone know aprox how much our books are going to cost for our first semester?

Anyone know when we should get our money disbursed?

Just how bad are the uni apts?

Thanks

our financial aid budget puts books around 2300; i think that's for the year but it could be more. our money will be distributed the first day of classes, NOT the first day of orientation (Aug 14th)--at least this is what the financial aid website said. we aren't able to get our checks early, either.

the university apts, in my opinion, were horrible but it really depends on what you're looking for. the rooms are very small, the apt is tiled and very institutional. they seem to be maintained but they are old--built in the 1960's and not remodeled since. The kitchen cabinets are metal (the ones in the apt i looked at were yellow). you could always get carpet remnants to make the place a bit cosier?? again, really depends on what you're looking for

Does anyone know aprox how much our books are going to cost for our first semester?

Anyone know when we should get our money disbursed?

Just how bad are the uni apts?

Thanks

our financial aid budget puts books around 2300; i think that's for the year but it could be more. our money will be distributed the first day of classes, NOT the first day of orientation (Aug 14th)--at least this is what the financial aid website said. we aren't able to get our checks early, either.

the university apts, in my opinion, were horrible but it really depends on what you're looking for. the rooms are very small, the apt is tiled and very institutional. they seem to be maintained but they are old--built in the 1960's and not remodeled since. The kitchen cabinets are metal (the ones in the apt i looked at were yellow). you could always get carpet remnants to make the place a bit cosier?? again, really depends on what you're looking for

Oh WOW, so I need at least $1150 for books my first semester?

Damn, so I need alot more money than I thought to survivr until money is disbursed. Eek.

Does anyone know aprox how much our books are going to cost for our first semester?

Anyone know when we should get our money disbursed?

Just how bad are the uni apts?

Thanks

our financial aid budget puts books around 2300; i think that's for the year but it could be more. our money will be distributed the first day of classes, NOT the first day of orientation (Aug 14th)--at least this is what the financial aid website said. we aren't able to get our checks early, either.

the university apts, in my opinion, were horrible but it really depends on what you're looking for. the rooms are very small, the apt is tiled and very institutional. they seem to be maintained but they are old--built in the 1960's and not remodeled since. The kitchen cabinets are metal (the ones in the apt i looked at were yellow). you could always get carpet remnants to make the place a bit cosier?? again, really depends on what you're looking for

Oh WOW, so I need at least $1150 for books my first semester?

Damn, so I need alot more money than I thought to survivr until money is disbursed. Eek.

you know what, though-I'm not sure how that is divided up, either. So don't freak out yet worst case scenario you can throw your books on a credit card and then pay it off right when you get your fin aid check. that way you can focus on using your available cash for apt deposits, moving costs etc..

as for cheap/second hand furniture there was some talk of garage sales and such around here. you could rent a pick up truck and drive around one day and see what you find--don't worry, it's Iowa-you'll fit right in j/k what will you need? there are always those chain matress stores where you can get a bed real cheap and they will usually deliver it for free. moving sales are usually going on now--people moving out would rather sell their stuff than move it with. a simple futon is usually pretty cheap--a hundred bucks or so. it might not be the most comfortable stuff but it will get you by for a bit until you can take the time to scour garage sales and second hand stores.

yeah, I will need about everything. I'm coming from FL and it is just too expensive for me to bring my stuff, plus I have a Queen size bed which is most probably too big for my small room, haha

This is looking like it is going to cost more than I thought, eek.

Charge, Charge, Charge!!

if you live in the university apts then yes, a queen bed will probably be too big it's sad that having my bed fit was the most important thing--i *heart* my bed

I love my bed too, sigh, I am an idiot!! I didn't really think about all these other 'little' things!!

Now I am rushing around and freaking out like an idiot!!

So when are you moving Greengrl?

I'm moving to Iowa the last week of July/first week of August. I'm only moving from Chicago, though, so the move isn't nearly as chaotic.

you're not an idiot, darling, you're completely normal. picking up one's life and moving across the country is hardly "instinctual" you'll be fine..just make lots of lists! and the drive from Iowa City to Schaumburg, IL or Bollingbrook, IL where the Ikeas are really isn't that bad